The father of a football supporter who died on the Malaysia Airlines flight hopes he is not lying somewhere with ‘nobody to give him a cuddle’.

Barry Sweeney, whose son Liam, 28, was travelling to New Zealand to see Newcastle United with fellow fan John Alder, 63, said he had stopped watching the news as it was too upsetting.

The 52-year-old, who cares for his terminally ill wife Lesley, told ITV’s Good Morning Britain his only hope was all the bodies got home.

‘I just want them to bring the 298 people who need to be brought home for this to close,’ he said.

‘I have seen a little bit of the news. I try to stop watching it only because it is upsetting – especially when you see body bags – but I’m hoping Liam is in one of those because I don’t want him to be lying there somewhere where there’s nobody there to give him a good cuddle.’

Mr Sweeney said his son’s mother and stepmother were ‘in bits’ and struggling to come to terms with what had happened.

Newcastle United fan Liam Sweeney’s family views tributes at St James Park (Picture: North News Pictures)

John Alder, of Newcastle, who was travelling to New Zealand with Liam on MH17 (Picture: Tim Stewart)